"The Power of Content: How a Strategic Content Marketing Plan Can Drive Business Growth" with Sujoy Golan
The most effective marketers are those that are adaptable, data-driven, and customer-focused in today's fast-paced digital environment. You may create a devoted following and promote business growth by comprehending your target and adjusting your marketing initiatives to suit their requirements and preferences. I'm here to help you on your path to success in the realm of digital and content marketing, regardless of your level of experience in the field or where you are in your career.
In this interview, we hear from Sujoy Golan, a seasoned marketer who stumbled into the world of digital marketing in 2010. Sujoy has worked for several firms and has played various roles, ranging from business to consumer marketing. He believes that marketing is a crucial aspect of a company and that marketers need to stay up-to-date with technology to remain competitive. In the interview, Sujoy discusses the broad patterns he sees appearing in the marketing industry, the direction he anticipates the industry moving, and the role AI will play in the future of marketing. Additionally, Sujoy shares his vision of an ideal content marketing stack, which involves utilizing creativity and technology in the right balance to gain insights and knowledge.
1. Tell us about your journey till now.
I entered the field of business in 2010 and stumbled into marketing during the early days of digital marketing. A colleague mentioned that their company was seeking someone to manage campaigns internally, which led me to research CPC and CPM before accepting the position. I began working at Direct Tie, which later changed its name to Media.net, and was fortunate to have a supportive learning environment. Learning by doing was key, and I tackled tasks such as entering campaign dashboards, creating keywords, and managing bids. I also gained a technical understanding of digital marketing.
During my time at Direct Tie/Media.net, I had the opportunity to work with and learn from founders of other successful businesses that originated in India and have since gone global. After four years, I moved on to Mobi and took on various roles in business, consumer marketing, and P&L management.
I quickly recognized the importance of marketing as a crucial aspect of a company's success. Managing P&Ls as a marketer required a deep understanding of the business, the product, and the target audience. This motivated me to continually develop my skills and knowledge in the field.
2. What are those broad patterns that you see appearing in the foreseeable future? And in what direction do you anticipate the entire industry moving?
Marketing is a field that is constantly evolving, and it is our responsibility as marketers to keep learning and adapting to new changes. With the rapid advancement of technology, it is no surprise that the topic of conversation on everyone's mind is artificial intelligence (AI). While it may be daunting to consider how AI will affect the industry, we must embrace the challenge and explore its potential.
Of course, AI is not the first technological advancement to revolutionize marketing. In the past, we have seen the rise of digital and mobile technologies, both of which have fundamentally altered our marketing approach. As technology continues to develop, marketers must stay current with the latest trends and tools. Being an early adopter and staying ahead of the curve will give you a competitive advantage.
It is essential to understand how technology can be used to achieve your marketing goals. By having a clear understanding of your target audience, their needs, and how your product or service can fit into their lives, you can develop innovative and engaging marketing strategies. Creative channels and technologies will continue to emerge, but marketers who are adaptable and willing to learn will always be in demand.
The world of marketing will always be evolving, and it is our responsibility to keep up with these changes. As technology continues to advance, we must embrace new tools and platforms while maintaining a customer-centric approach. By doing so, we can ensure that our marketing initiatives are effective and successful.
3. What does your ideal content marketing stack look like?
Understanding the needs of your audience is key to success in marketing. This has always been a challenging task and should be the foundation of any marketing strategy. Once this is achieved, creativity can be applied to gain insights and knowledge. With the introduction of AI and creative automation, there are now many tools available to help marketers achieve their goals. However, it is important to not rely solely on technology.
Regarding the topic of audience insights, it is important to consider that many of your competitors likely have access to the same information. Simply creating similar content will not set you apart from the crowd. Therefore, marketers need to take a step back and determine their unique approach to content marketing. This involves creatively positioning their product or service in a way that stands out from the competition.
While technology can assist in making decisions, it cannot complete them on its own. Marketers must use technology as a tool to achieve their goals, rather than relying solely on it. It is also important to analyze the impact of marketing efforts and use intelligence and analytics to understand how they are performing. Analytics can provide insights into website traffic and audience engagement, which can be used to improve future marketing efforts.
4. What issues do you and your team confront daily over the long term regarding, for example, execution, development, and the entire marketing cycle?
Accuracy is a critical aspect of our work, and it's not just about sweating the small stuff; it's also about making a significant contribution.
In my opinion, this requires attention to detail. Doing what's right is essential for us and most teams. It's not enough for marketers to focus only on their specific roles, such as setting up campaigns, changing bids, and uploading images. While these tasks are necessary, we need to move beyond operational tasks and ensure that everyone contributes appropriately.
To achieve this, we must put in the time and effort to plan our projects properly and understand our target audience. As B2B marketers, we must also consider our target market's interests and preferences, such as their appreciation for reels and eye-catching content. We need to take great care to understand our audience because their interests and preferences are constantly evolving.
Moreover, we need to allocate our time effectively. Spending 80% of our time on execution and just 25% on planning and strategy won't be enough. Automation is quickly taking over execution tasks, which means we need to focus more on strategy and planning. By doing so, we can make sure that our campaigns and content appeal to our target audience and leave a lasting impact.
5. What do you consider to be exceptional content, and what do you believe it requires to be produced?
For me, it's simple: if something catches my eye, it's excellent. But it's not just about visual appeal. The real question is whether it makes us feel something, and hopefully, that feeling is a positive one. However, there's more to it than that. Does it make us sit up straighter or ponder something? Does it prompt us to reflect or cause us to pause? Ultimately, does it leave an impact on us?
If something triggers us to think, "Hey, maybe I can do this better," then that's fascinating. It means we gained knowledge and were inspired. But is this triggered by the material itself, or is it the emotion that it elicits in us? If it's the latter, then I consider it a success.
Creating content can be challenging because it's often seen as a process that involves generating multiple blogs with various keywords. However, if we focus on creating content that leaves a lasting impact on the reader, then we can achieve success.
